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Passenger pigeon
The passenger pigeon or wild pigeon (Ectopistes migratorius) is a species of pigeon that is endemic to North America. Its common name is derived from the French word passager, meaning "passing by", due to the migratory habits of the species. The scientific name also refers to its migratory characteristics. The morphologically similar mourning dove (Zenaida macroura) was long thought to be its closest relative, and the two were at times confused, but genetic analysis has shown that the genus Patagioenas is more closely related to it than the Zenaida doves. The passenger pigeon is sexually dimorphic in size and coloration. The male is 390 to 410 mm (15.4 to 16.1 in) in length, mainly gray on the upperparts, lighter on the underparts, with iridescent bronze feathers on the neck, and black spots on the wings. The female is 380 to 400 mm (15.0 to 15.7 in), and is duller and browner than the male overall. The juvenile is similar to the female, but without iridescence. It mainly inhabits the deciduous forests of eastern North America and was also recorded elsewhere, but breeds primarily around the Great Lakes. The pigeon migrates in enormous flocks, constantly searching for food, shelter, and breeding grounds, and is the most abundant bird in North America, numbering around 3 billion, and possibly up to 5 billion, “at the time of the discovery of America,” according to A. W. Schorger. Though one genetic study concluded that the bird was not always that abundant, and that the population size fluctuated dramatically over time, a more recent study, drawing on far more genetic data, found that the passenger-pigeon population size has been stable for the 20,000 years prior to "its 19th-century decline and previously presumed extinction." A very fast flyer, the passenger pigeon can reach a speed of 100 km/h (62 mph). The bird feeds mainly on mast, and also fruits and invertebrates. It practices communal roosting and communal breeding, and its extreme gregariousness can be linked with searching for food and predator satiation. Passenger pigeons were hunted by Native Americans, but hunting intensified after the arrival of Europeans, particularly in the 19th century. Pigeon meat was commercialized as cheap food, resulting in hunting on a massive scale for many decades. There were several other factors contributing to the decline and presumed extinction of the species, including shrinking of the large breeding populations necessary for preservation of the species and widespread deforestation, which destroyed its habitat. A slow decline between about 1800 and 1870 was followed by a rapid decline between 1870 and 1890. The last recorded wild bird of that is thought to have been shot in 1901. The last captive birds of historical North America were divided in three groups around the turn of the 20th century, some of which were photographed alive. Martha, once thought to be the last passenger pigeon, died on September 1, 1914, at the Cincinnati Zoo. Their presumed eradication of this species was thought to be a notable example of anthropogenic extinction. However, in April 11, 2019, the flock of passenger pigeons were rediscovered in the forest near Chicago, proving that passenger pigeons are still alive today, and their population is currently recovering. Category:Animals Category:Species Category:Non-Sapient Species Category:Real Life Species Category:Birds Category:Flying Species Category:Bipedal Species